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Review: Iron-Blooded Orphans HG Gundam Gusion Rebake

Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans brought with it a slew of Gunpla kits that capture its gritty, industrial feel. In 2016, a high-grade kit based on Gundam Gusion Rebake, piloted by Akihiro Altland, came out to Gunpla fans. Gunpla 101 contributor the Evil Prof wrote up his impressions after building the kit for the first time this year. Initial Impressions Let me start this review by saying I’m a Gunpla novice. So when I first saw the Iron-Blooded Orphans kits at my local comic shop, I wasn’t even aware there was a Gundam series by that name. None of these new kits looked anything like the Gundams I was familiar with. However, I have since fallen in love with the Iron-Blooded Orphans HG line of kits, and its unique, interesting designs. Initially, the HG Gundam Gusion Rebake was not high on my wish list once built, but when my wife brought it home for me, I couldn’t say no. It was time to build. Would the Gusion Rebake exceed my expectations? That’s what I
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Review: Real Grade Unicorn

This fall, in order to commemorate the new life-sized Unicorn Gundam in Odaiba, Tokyo, Bandai announced their latest additional the real grade line: the 1/144 RG Unicorn . Our contributor Henry , who you might remember from his seam line tutorial , investigates: does this highly anticipated model kit live up to the hype? Initial Impressions A while ago, the reveal that the latest in Bandai’s excellent Real Grade line of kits would be none other than the Unicorn Gundam was announced to mixed reviews. Many assumed the kit would be absurdly fragile, much in the same way people had previously seen with the RG Zeta Gundam , and other Unicorn Gundam kits even at larger scales. Accusations of the kit being a “grenade” that would fall apart in even the most delicate hands were flown around. How wrong we all were. Design and Colors The Unicorn Gundam in its standard, Unicorn mode—so named for its single protruding horn—doesn’t really look much like a Gundam at a
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Review: MG Build Gundam Mark II

I love Gunpla so much, I don’t only build them for my own blog. I also review figures and Gundam model kits for Anime News Network. READ ON ANN This spring, Bluefin sent me one of their more challenging offerings, the Master Grade Build Gundam Mark II . It’s based off of a briefly-used model from Gundam Build Fighters, which is itself nearly identical to the AEUG Gundam Mark II in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. In fact, this 2014 Gunpla kit uses all the same parts as the Master Grade Mark II , but has a new V-fin, a booster backpack, and some other cool accessories. In short, it was new to me, but maybe not new to people who’ve built the previous kit! I loved how it had some real heft to it. It feels way more substantial than my last Master Grade build, the Strike Rouge . It made me realize that after six years of Gunpla modeling, I finally feel not only up to the challenge of a Master Grade, but relaxed and comfortable while I build it. Check out the entire article on
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SD Week Review: SD 259 Strike Gundam Striker Weapon System

It’s Day 6 of SD Week! Your sixth and final review of the week comes from Mario Lebel, this time checking out a tiny model tricked out with an accessory so big it’s named after it—the Striker Weapon System . Find out why he calls it the “Gundam Swiss Army Knife!” First Impressions Sometimes you buy a kit you know you’re going to love and the SD 259 Striker Weapon System is one of those kits. It features one of the most popular Gundams—the Strike Gundam from Gundam Seed—and it’s loaded with extras. There was no doubt in my mind that this was going to be a worthy addition to my Gunpla collection. The only reason I held back and built three other SD kits before building this one was my fear that it would outshine any other SD and ruin any chances that I’d have fun building less impressive kits. As it stands, I think that was a good decision. Color and Design There’s no doubt in my mind that the RX-78-2 Gundam is the most iconic model in the entire Gundamfranc
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